System and method for producing merchandise for a virtual environment

ABSTRACT

A system and method are provided for producing customized merchandise for a user based upon a character within a virtual environment, by retrieving character data representing a player character within a game and converting the character data into merchandise attributes. The merchandise attributes are then used to create instructions for producing an item of customized merchandise.

Priority claim is hereby made under 35 U.S.C. §119(E) to U.S.Provisional Application No. 60/544,909, filed Feb. 12, 2004.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to systems and methods for producing merchandisefrom a virtual environment, and more particularly to a system and methodfor producing customized merchandise based upon the appearance,attributes and experiences of characters and items they have acquiredwithin the virtual environment of a computer or console game.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Presently, personal computer and console based (e.g. Sony's Playstation,Microsoft's XBOX and Nintendo's Gamecube) games allow individuals and/orgroups of individuals to explore and interact with a virtualenvironment. The virtual environments presented in these games arehighly detailed and typically present a science fiction, fantasy orhistorical milieu in which players may interact with the environment,computer controlled entities and other player controlled entities aspart of an entertainment simulation of an alternate reality.

Computer gaming, also known as electronic gaming, began as an individualsingle player experience. Soon thereafter, multiplayer games werecreated allowing more than one player to play the same game at the sametime, either cooperatively to achieve a common goal, as a competitionagainst one another or a mixture of both.

As computers became more powerful and network connectivity (includingthe Internet) became more prevalent, the complexity of computer gamesand the number of simultaneous players increased. Today, games such asCity of Heroes, Everquest, Star Wars Galaxies, World of Warcraft, FinalFantasy XI and Lineage involve hundreds of thousands of players. Thesegames allow groups of thousands of people to share a virtual experiencetogether by allowing the individual players within the group to interactwith each other and the environment of a persistent or semi-persistentvirtual world (also referred to as the “game world”). These types ofgames have become known as Massively Multiplayer Online Games(“MMOG(s)”) or Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game(s)(“MMORPG(s)”), although other variations of the name also exist.

Part of the attraction of an MMORPG, at least for some players, is theability to create alternate personas for themselves. Often playerscreate one or more characters and have the ability to customize theircharacters' appearance, physical and mental attributes, and direct thedevelopment of the character through decisions made within the virtualenvironment. For example, a player's character grows and develops overtime as it explores and interacts with the environment and othercharacters within the game world.

For example, within a fantasy themed MMORPG, a player typically canchoose to play any of several races such as Elves, Dwarves, Humans, orOgres. The majority of MMORPGs also allows the player to allocatevarious physical and mental attributes (e.g., strength, dexterity,constitution, intelligence, wisdom, charisma, etc.) which in turndetermines the character's abilities within the virtual environment. Aplayer can further customize his or her character by selecting gender,facial appearance, body type, hair color/styles, skin tone and clothing.The character may be further modified through the selection of weapons,equipment and other accessories. Over time, a character's actions withinthe environment may also affect the character's attributes andappearance. For example, other genera of MMORPGs may use differentnon-humanoid representations of the player's presence within the virtualenvironment.

In one instance, a science fiction-themed MMORPG may provide the playerwith the ability to customize a spaceship or other vehicle instead of orin addition to a humanoid character used in the fantasy setting. OtherMMORPGs may provide the player with the ability to customize variousentities within the game world including characters, equipment and evenaspects of the environment itself (i.e. the ability for a player tobuild his or her own castle or space station within a game world).

As a player proceeds within the game, the player may attain additionalcustomization such as new abilities, skills, experience points, items,trophies, clothes, collectibles, or other indicators of advancement ortime spent within the virtual environment game world. Even the effectsof aging, scars or behavior may be reflected in the character'sappearance.

To play a MMORPG, a player installs a computer program (Game Client) andconnects to a network of computers (Game System) and other players dothe same. For various reasons, including to reduce the risk of cheatingand to control the intellectual property within an MMORPG, the GameClient often employs the use of security algorithms, encryption, and EndUser Licenses that restrict how a player can interact with the GameClient and Game System. Additionally, in most instances, players runtheir game clients on hardware that is not capable of fully realizingthe graphical nature of the Game System. As a further protection againstcheating, the data representing a player's character or other entitiesunder the player's control is typically stored on the Game System ratherthan on the Game Client. While there are various business models forrecouping the costs of developing a MMORPG and operating the GameSystem, players are typically charged a fixed amount to purchase theGame Client software and then pay a monthly fee for access to the GameSystem.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

At present, there are no systems or methods known to the inventor forplayers to obtain customized merchandise based upon their characters andexperiences within the virtual game world.

It is therefore desirable to have a system and method which can producevarious customized merchandise based upon the appearance, attributes andexperiences of a player character within a virtual environment (alsoreferred to as the game world). In accordance with an embodiment of theinvention, a system and method are employed for generating customizedmerchandise based upon an entity (a player's character) within a virtualenvironment including receiving at least one data element from a dataset, wherein the data set contains a plurality of data elements definingan entity within a virtual environment. The data element is thentranslated into at least one merchandise characteristic. Finally, atleast one merchandise characteristic is used to customize merchandise.

In accordance with another embodiment of the invention, a system andmethod are employed to produce customized merchandise for a user (alsoreferred to as a player) based upon a character within a gameenvironment by receiving character data representing a character withina virtual environment and converting the character data into merchandiseattributes. The merchandise attributes are then used to createinstructions for producing an item of customized merchandise. The systemmay then produce the merchandise locally or transmit the instructions toanother system to manufacture the merchandise. Depending upon the item,the manufacturing instruction may be transmitted to the user requestingthe item. For example, a user may wish to have a high resolution imageor video (well in excess of the models used for the actual game) of hisor her character within the game environment. In the inventive system,the user can take a snapshot of his/her character within the virtualenvironment, the system then uses the character data and game data todetermine the character's position within the environment, the clothing,weapons and equipment the character is using and information about thesurrounding environment (including the presence of any environmentaleffects, spells, monsters or other characters). The system could thenuse this information in combination with the high resolution models usedto develop the game (but which are impractical for use in the gameitself) in order to generate a high resolution image or video of theplayer's character within the environment. In the case of a highresolution image, the image may be printed and the final product sent tothe user. Alternatively, the high resolution image or video file couldbe sent to the user for display of the computer screen or to be printedout on the user's own printer.

In accordance with yet another aspect of the present invention, thetransformation of character attributes into merchandise characteristicsmay include the calculation of new character statistics for use in atleast one alternative game system. In one embodiment, character datafrom a computer role-playing game is used to generate a customizedcollectible trading card. The collectible trading card can includestatistics for use in a collectible trading card game (e.g. Magic theGathering™). It is also within the scope of the invention to renderother game components such as miniatures, statistic cards and playerrecord sheets.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, theinventive system can convert the player character record from a firstdata format to a second data format thereby allowing the player to use acharacter developed in one virtual environment to be used in another.For example this would allow a player to transport a character developedin a MMORPG to a single player game, other MMORPG (including from oneplatform to another) or to a pen and paper game system.

As will be appreciated by the foregoing, the present invention providesa system and method for producing a customized merchandise including,but not limited to, collectible trading cards, action figures, posters,books, postcards and game components for games not rooted in a virtualenvironment. The customized merchandise will be based upon some elementof the player's character or equipment so as to make it personal to thatplayer. The customized merchandise may be purchased within the virtualenvironment of the game itself or through an external interface. It willalso be understood by one skilled in the art that the inventive systemmay also be applied to other types of multiplayer games such as firstperson shooters and simulations as well as single player games.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Further objects, features and advantages of the invention will becomeapparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunctionwith the accompanying drawings showing illustrative embodiments of theinvention, in which:

FIG. 1A illustrates a graphical user interface (GUI) of a game clientused by a player to create and customize a new character to use within agame, in accordance with an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 1B illustrates a GUI of a game client used, in accordance with anembodiment of the invention, by the player to equip his character withitems found within the game;

FIG. 1C illustrates a GUI of a game client that, in accordance with anembodiment of the invention, contains statistics about the characterwithin the game;

FIG. 2 illustrates a GUI of a game in play depicting the player'scharacter (the knight) battling an enemy (the dragon), in accordancewith an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 3 illustrates a GUI of a game client used by the player to ordercustomized merchandise based on the player's game character, inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 4A illustrates the interaction between a player and a system forproviding merchandise to a user, in accordance with an embodiment of theinvention;

FIG. 4B and FIG. 4C illustrate the front and back, respectively of acollectible trading card, in accordance with an embodiment of theinvention, ordered by a player featuring the name and the likeness ofthe player's character on the front and statistics about the player onthe back;

FIG. 5 illustrates the relationships between game clients, the Internet,a game server, a fulfillment web server, and a fulfillment server, inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention; and

FIG. 6 illustrates the process flow for the fulfillment devicespresented in FIG. 5.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The invention is directed to systems and methods for producingcustomized merchandise based upon the attributes of a user's virtualentity (also referred to as a player's character) within a virtualenvironment (a game world). The customized merchandise produced by thepresent invention may be either tangible (e.g., trading cards, posters,miniatures, action figures, books, patches, t-shirts, stickers) orintangible (e.g., image and movie files, Web sites, translated characterrecords).

With reference to FIG. 1A, when a person begins to enter a game for thefirst time, the player is presented with an interface to create andcustomize a character. The character the player creates is apersonalized representation the player will use to play the game. Inmultiplayer games, other players can recognize different characters asrepresenting different players since each character has been customizedby its respective owner. Similar interfaces are also used in singleplayer games as well.

In this example, the player has decided on the name, “Bobby,” for hischaracter and typed it into name field 110. In a MMORPG, character namesare usually unique within a game and filtered to be consistent with thepolicies of the game. Examples of filters include: restrictions on theuse of profanity, slang, trademarks, and other undesirable text.

The tabbed interface shows the player customizing the appearance oftheir character on Appearance tab 115. The interface also shows thatattributes and skills related to the character can be customized throughselecting the appropriate tab (e.g., Attributes tab 120, Skills tab125); however, neither of these tabs is detailed here.

Within Appearance tab 115, the player has specified the character'sgender 130 and adjusted the character's facial features 135, includingfacial style 135 a, skin color 135 b, eye color 135 c, and hair color135 d to the player's liking. All of the selected appearancecharacteristics are stored as data elements within a character recordand are used to generate the virtual representation of the player withinthe virtual environment of the game. As the player adjusts theseparameters, a preview of the character is provided within a window onthe GUI. This allows the player to see the influence that the differentparameters have on the character in real time. The preview greatlyenhances the player's ability to customize the character. Many playersspend a great deal of time customizing the appearance of their characterbefore entering the game. Different games have different types ofcharacters and have different levels of customizability. Some games donot use humanoid characters to represent players. For example, in ascience fiction game, the player's character may be a spaceship. In sucha game the player usually can select different ships, alter a ship'sdesign, and change the markings on a ship they have selected.

While some characteristics affect the appearance of a character othersare statistical measurements of a character's physical and mentalabilities and skills. Additionally, some games may not allow graphicalcustomizations, but instead provide for differentiation of playercharacters through the development of these nonappearance relatedcharacteristics or characteristics that a character acquires at thestart of or during the course of playing the game. A few examples ofsuch defining statistics and characteristics include: name, species,color, class, ranks, uniform, allegiances, group affiliation, teammembership, strength number of kills, professions, point totals, andlevels. FIG. 1C illustrates some of these statistics andcharacteristics.

In reference to FIG. 1B, the player maintains an inventory for theplayer's character in which clothes 210, armor 215, weapons 220, andother accessories are collected. The inventory is accessed through aninterface such as the one shown. As the character progresses through thegame it has access to higher-level gear, which is more powerful andeffective within the game. The player can review items within theplayer's inventory and equip the character with an item appropriate tothe current game situation. The GUI provided in FIG. 1B shows a“Paper-doll” view of the character 250 where items can be dragged fromthe inventory on the left to the preview window on the right. Asitems—in this case, swords 260 a through 260 f—are selected they willappear either on or next to the character. For example, character 250 iscurrently not wearing clothes. These may be added, however, from theClothes tab 210. In a similar fashion, armor and accessories such as acape could be added by accessing Armor tab 215 or Accessories tab 225,respectively. Management of a character's inventory is a common gamemechanic leading to many hours of game play. Players collect, trade,buy, and fight over items to add to their inventory. Games in differentgenres, such as science fiction, can incorporate items specific to thatgenre. For example, laser guns may be substituted in place of swords asthe standard weapon used by characters within a science fiction-typegame. The data describing clothing and other equipment or gear is alsostored in the character record.

Many games allow players to craft new items to be bought and sold. Forexample, a player that creates a character that is skilled inblacksmithing and forging could have his or her character craft newswords provided the character had the raw materials and furnace orblacksmith shop within the game to do so. As these items are created,data describing the item is added to the character record. Some gamesalso allow the users to import customized graphics into a game for useas “skins” for the polygonal models used on their characters and theirequipment as well as two dimensional art used for insignia to denotemembership within an organization.

With reference to FIG. 1C, as a player plays a game, the player'scharacter collects experience, acquires new skills, advances within thegame world, and forms affiliations. This information is available forreview by the player to help gauge the progress in the game and to planfor future advancement. The information GUI shown in FIG. 1C illustratesa character and the various statistics and facts about that character.For example, referring to the information provided under GeneralStatistics tab 310, the character has reached the level 7 and has 2194points. The player-owner of this character needs his character to get406 more points to reach the next level. In addition, this character isa member of the guild “Golden Heroes.” A guild is a group 330 of playersthat have decided to cooperate with each other in a formal manner. Byplaying in a group, the members of the group are able to tackle highlevel monsters or obstacles together that would be difficult orimpossible for a single player to attempt on its own. Games oftenencourage group play by sharing experience points among all members ofthe group whenever a member of the group gains experience. Games benefitfrom group play because group play encourages building of communitieswithin the game and aids in retaining players: Players (also sometimescalled subscribers when, for example, subscription fees are imposed) aremore likely to continue playing the game and paying subscription fees ifthey have peers/colleagues that are still playing the game. The presentinvention allows for certain customized merchandise to be made availableonly to members of a predefined group. Merchandise may be customized toprominently feature logos and/or insignia of a specific clan, guild,party or other organization within a game and only be made available toplayers who have characters that are members of that organization. Aspart of the process of ordering merchandise the inventive system maycheck and see if the user has a character which qualifies him topurchase an item.

Advancements tab 320 enables players to view a GUI that identifiesvarious requirements required to reach the next level of a game. Forexample, to reach a subsequent game level, a predetermined number ofpoints may be required. In another instance, a predetermined level ofhealth, strength and/or stamina may be required, or certain weaponskills must be attained or a predetermined number of enemies must bekilled.

Different games refer to groups 330 of players by using different namesdepending on the genre and fiction of the game—some examples ofdifferent terms for groups include: guild, clan, team, company, playerassociation, corporation, and club.

Different games will also collect and maintain different statisticsabout a player's character. For example, in a science fiction-themedgame the skill of the character with weapons may relate to laser gunsand rifles as opposed to daggers and swords as shown in FIG. 1C. Otherattributes of the character could also be tracked, such as theprofession and the proficiency of the character at the profession. Forexample, a player could teach his or her character to become a masterblacksmith or intermediate bounty hunter or apprentice wizard and havethis statistic displayed on the character information GUI.

With reference to FIG. 2, a fully-equipped player controlled character,the knight 410, fights an opponent, the dragon 420. Progress meters 430at the top of the illustration provide feedback to the player allowingthe player to monitor the battle and take appropriate action. Most gamesare competitive in nature where individual players will compete againsteach other or against nonplayer controlled characters. The term Playerversus Player, abbreviated PvP, is used to describe the case whereplayers fight each other and Player versus Environment, abbreviated PvE,is used to describe the case where players do not fight each other, butinstead fight opponents controlled by the game. Games are available thatmix PvP and PvE and games are also available that are more cooperativethan competitive.

In the example depicted, the player, represented by knight 410, isengaged in PvE conflict with dragon 420. As knight 410 battles dragon420, the player's character is gaining experience points and advancingwithin the game. By the nature of being a competitive game, the playeris also risking the death of his character or at least the loss of someattributes such as experience points or some other measure ofadvancement should the dragon be victorious. Since attributes orstatistics related to the character are affected by the player'sactions, the player's character can be considered customized by theactions of the player by way of the decisions the player made in playingthe character within the game.

As players play the game with their characters, they often becomeemotionally invested with the game and specifically with theirrespective character(s). Some players even write stories about theircharacter(s) and role-play the stories inside the game. The GUI of FIG.3 provides an interface to allow a player to order merchandise based onthe representation of the player's character within the game.

In the example illustrated by FIG. 3, a player has accessed a GUI withinthe game client that allows ordering among various merchandise choices510—e.g., a collectible trading card 510 a or a wall poster 510 bdepicting the player's character. Options 520 are available to furthercustomize the item being ordered. In the case of ordering thecollectible trading card the options include: the pose 520 a thecharacter should have when the card is printed, the color of the card520 b itself, the color of the background 520 c behind the character onthe card, and the quantity of cards 520 d to order.

A preview 530 of what the ordered item will look like is provided on theright hand side of the interface. In the case of the collectible tradingcard, the player can choose to examine either the front or the back. Theback of the trading card may contain statistics derived from theplayer's character at the time the order is placed. The front of thecard depicts the player's character equipped with the clothes, armor,weapons, and accessories the character currently is equipped with in thegame.

When the order is placed, charges may be added to the player's accountto be billed at the next installment (e.g., monthly), or charges couldbe paid immediately via credit card or some other means. While thisexample illustrates the ability to purchase individual types ofmerchandise a la carte style, it should be inferred that multiplediffering merchandise items could be ordered through the use of ashopping cart system.

Additional customized merchandise based on the customized representationof the player's character could also be made available and is notlimited to collectible trading cards 510 a or wall posters 510 b. Someexamples of other merchandise include: t-shirt, trophy, calendar, cup,flag, banner jacket, bumper sticker, stickpin, badge, hat, stationery,pen, plaque, action figure, doll, bust, model, sculpture, mask, or evenincluding clothing and other accessories resembling those of thecustomized character. Some examples of electronic merchandise that maybe purchased include: an interactive Web site devoted to the characterproviding a useful entertainment and information venue for the playerand associates of the player to gather, a high quality video of thecharacter performing a specific adventure or being the star of a shortmovie, a screensaver with the character or virtual locations thecharacter has seen, a stand alone video game such as a retro cell phonegame, or a software program that uses the character or character data inan interesting way (such as an Instant Messaging client that uses thecharacter's facial expressions in place of emoticons or a newsreaderthat details events that happen to the character within the originatinggame). Additionally, the system could provide players with a method ofconverting a character record from one game system to another.

While FIG. 3 depicts an interface within a game client, it should benoted that the defining characteristic of the interface is not that itis embedded within the game client but that it is a means to ordercustomized merchandise based on the customized representation of aplayer's character within a game. As such, analogous functionality couldbe provided through other interfaces such as:

a) An in-game mechanism where a player directs his or her customizedcharacter into a structure within the game where a nonplayer charactergreets the player and, through a series of dialog interchanges betweenthe player controlled character and the nonplayer character, an order isplaced for customized merchandise based on the customized representationof the player's character.

b) An external interface such as a Web site where a player may visit andenter specific information allowing the Web site to either access theplayer's character information or recreating the player's characterinformation and allowing the player to place an order for customizedmerchandise based on the customized representation of the player'scharacter.

c) A third party program installed on the player's computer that eitheraccesses the player's character information or recreates the player'scharacter information and allows the player to place an order forcustomized merchandise based on the customized representation of theplayer's character.

d) An application programming interface, otherwise known as an API, thatpermits the automated ordering of customized merchandise based on aplayer's customized representation of the player's character when apredetermined or dynamic condition is met. An example of one suchcondition is the player reaching a certain rank, level, or milestonewithin the game and the game automatically ordering and sending to theplayer the merchandise, at no cost to the player, as a reward fordedication in playing the game and to memorialize the significantaccomplishment of the player.

FIG. 4A illustrates the interaction between a player and a system forproviding merchandise to a user, in accordance with an embodiment of theinvention. With reference to FIG. 4A, a player 10 plays a game on hishome computer 12. Within the game, the player uses a character becustomized before starting. As he plays, the character advances in thegame. The game is connected via the Internet 14 to the game server 16.The player 10 orders customized merchandise based on his customizedcharacter. The request is sent from his computer 12, through theInternet 14, to the game servers 16. The appropriate character dataassociated with the player's character that is needed to complete theorder is extracted 18. The merchandise is then customized 20 based onthe extracted character data, and delivery 22 is made to player 10.

In this example the player 10 holds two pieces of customizedmerchandise. In his right hand, he holds an action figure doll 26 withthe likeness of his customized character. In his left hand, he holds thecollectible trading card 24 as he would have customized and orderedusing the GUI depicted in FIG. 3. FIG. 4B shows the front detail 28 ofthe collectible trading card 24 that the player ordered in FIG. 4A. FIG.4C shows the back detail 29 of the collectible trading card that theplayer ordered in FIG. 4A.

The front 28 of the trading card is as was presented in the merchandisepreview window of FIG. 3. The back of the trading card containsstatistics from the game as was seen in FIG. 1C; however, not all thestatistics from the GUI presented in FIG. 1C is included on the back ofthe trading card while additional information not available from thecharacter information GUI of FIG. 1C is included. For example, theinformation related to the number of points the character currently hasand needs to reach the next level is missing and the Character LifeFacts 30 section has been added.

As part of the data extraction process shown in FIG. 4A only therelevant data needed to create the merchandise was extracted from thegame system. Extra data was ignored while other data that was needed wasacquired. The data extracted is based upon the item requested.

The additional information presented on the back of the card 24 canserve many purposes including: incentive for a player to ordermerchandise, serial and lot numbers for tracking and authentication ofcollectible merchandise as shown in 32, use in conversion of gamestatistics for other games or mediums, and information appropriate forthe merchandise that may not have been appropriate, redundant, or simplyunnecessary to include within the original game.

In reference to FIG. 5, multiple game clients 40-1 through 40-N connectto the Internet and connect to the game server 16 to play a multiplayergame. The game clients 40-1 through 40-N exchange messages through theInternet 14 with the game server 16. The same arrangements of gameclients can support an alternate configuration where game clientsexchange messages with each other through the Internet 14 and bypass thegame server 16 to operate in a peer-to-peer manner.

When a player desires to purchase customized merchandise, based on theircustomized character in the game, several avenues of transmitting thatdesire to the appropriate fulfillment server 42 are available.

In one scenario, the player's game client, for example client 401,transmits a message containing the order details through the Internet 14to the game server 16, which authenticates and validates the request.The request is then passed through the Internet to the fulfillmentsystem 42 to produce the customized merchandise.

In another scenario, the player connects to a fulfillment web server 44through the Internet 14. Accessing the fulfillment web server 44, theplayer enters details about his customized character. The details of theorder are then transmitted by the fulfillment web server 44 in a messagethrough the Internet 14 to the fulfillment system 42 where thecustomized merchandise is produced.

In yet another scenario the player's game client 40 transmits a messagecontaining the order details through the Internet 14 directly to thefulfillment system 42 where the customized merchandise is produced.

Other scenarios are possible in which various elements of this processare substituted with analogous elements that serve similar functions.For example, the communication network used to exchange messages doesnot have to be the Internet 14; other networks and means ofcommunication are acceptable.

In reference to FIG. 6, fulfillment system 42 is described as a seriesof processes that are executed in sequential order. The order of theprocesses could be rearranged and individual processes combined oreliminated depending on the requirements of the situation and themerchandise being customized without invalidating the underlying conceptof a system composed of processes that render customized merchandisebased on data used to represent a customized character.

Furthermore, under certain conditions some processes may be executed indifferent locations. For example, in the case of a collectible tradingcard 24, it may be more efficient for the game servers to render thecharacter data into an electronic image file and to pass this file tothe fulfillment system 42 for printing onto the physical card media.

In the FIG. 6 depiction of the fulfillment system that a game client 40operates by a game player requests creation of customized merchandisebased on the player's customized game character by transmitting arequest message to the Fulfillment Initiation Process 50.

The Fulfillment Initiation Process 50 evaluates and accepts or rejectsthe request for creation of customized merchandise. Some of the criteriathat might be used to determine this include: whether the request comesfrom a trusted source and whether the request includes the appropriatedata necessary to carry out the fulfillment operations.

The data needed to carry out the fulfillment operation may include:location of the customized character information, the format of thecustomized character information, procedures to access the customizedcharacter information, the type of merchandise that is being ordered,the quantity, and a unique identifier used to retrieve furtherinformation related to the character. These types of data are moreaccurately referred to as “meta-data” since it is data used to describeproperties and attributes of the order and of the character data thatwill be needed to complete the order for customized merchandise.

As indicated previously, the request may come from other sources besidesthe game client 40. For example, the player through an externalinterface such as a Web site could place an order or the game systemitself could place an order.

Further variations include how the order is placed: either using “push”or “pull” technology. “Push” technology is where an external entity, inthis case the game client 40, sends a request to a second entity, inthis case the Fulfillment Initiation Process 50. “Pull” technology iswhere one entity, in this case the Fulfillment Initiation Process 50,periodically queries the external entity, in this case the game client40, to see if the external entity desires an action to take place, inthis case the creation of customized merchandise.

After the order has been accepted, the meta-information is transferredto the Data Acquisition Process 52. The Data Acquisition Processexamines metadata and determines what type of merchandise is beingrequested. Using this information an electronic template for themerchandise to be built is retrieved from the Merchandise TemplateDatabase 54. This template specifies, in sufficient detail to produce agiven type of merchandise, exactly what data is needed and how it shouldbe formatted.

If the merchandise to be produced is a collectible trading card, thetemplate may include information on the dimensions of the image to beused on the front of the card, how and where to place the character'sname on the front of the card, which statistics to include on the backof the card, and how those statistics should be formatted.

Additional information for the manufacturing of the merchandise may beincluded in the template—for example, the materials, machines, process,and facilities to use in manufacturing the merchandise could bespecified in the template.

Based on the template retrieved from the Merchandise Template Database54, the Data Acquisition Process 52 connects to the Player CharacterInformation Database 56, Game Object Library Database 58, and the PlayerHistory and Statistics Database 60 to retrieve the data specified in thetemplate.

The Player Character Database 56 contains data describing customizationsplayers make to their characters. A unique identifier associated witheach player and his or her character is used as an index into thedatabase. The index allows efficient retrieval of the customization datathe player has chosen for his or her character. The customization datais stored in relation to the default objects and character designelements found within the game—for example, the player character withthe unique identifier 12345 has a nose 1.2 times as long as the defaultnose; the player character with the unique identifier 67890 has eyescolored blue and hair colored blonde.

The Game Object Library 58 contains geometry, color, and texture datadescribing the default objects and character design elements used tocreate customized characters. Examples of these objects and designelements include the geometry, color, and texture information used torepresent the different styles of bodies, faces, outfits, weapons,armor, and accessories that a player may utilize in customizing theircharacters.

An analogy for the relationship between the Player Character Database 56and the Game Object Library 58 is that of a recipe to a grocery store.The recipe specifies which items are needed from the store and how thoseitems should be modified or manipulated to produce the final product. Inthis case the recipe is the data describing the customizations from thePlayer Character Database 56, the store is the Game Object Library 58,and the final product is the customized character.

The Player History and Statistics Database 60 contains historicalinformation and statistics about characters within the game. Examples oftypes of historical information that are stored in the database includethe tasks, quests, and milestones that the characters accomplishedwithin the game. Examples of types of statistical information that arestored in the database include the character's level, rank,affiliations, strength, number and types of enemies killed, profession,and skills.

Depending on the type of merchandise to be produced, the quality of thedata stored in the Game Object Library Database 58 may not be sufficientto produce the desired merchandise to the quality standards that aredesired. This may be the case if, for example, only low-resolutiontextures and geometry data is stored in the Game Object Library database58 and a high-resolution piece of merchandise is desired. Low-resolutiondata may be stored in the Game Object Library database 58 to maintain acertain performance level of the game running in real time on a personalcomputer and to reduce space required to store the data.

In cases when the data from the Game Object Library Database 58 is notacceptable, data is retrieved from the Enhanced Game Object LibraryDatabase 62. This database contains high-resolution geometry and texturedata and is used to replace the low-resolution geometry and texture dataretrieved from the Game Object Library Database 58.

Next, the Data Preparation Process 64 takes the data that was acquiredin the Data Acquisition Process 52, and modifies the data to meet thereeds of the desired manufacturing process. Modifications are determinedbased on analyzing the metadata for each order. The data then undergoesone or more modifications, examples of which may include: refinement,enhancement, transformation, and replacement. Two common modificationsinclude: replacing low-resolution with high-resolution geometry andtexture data and, using commonly known graphical techniques andalgorithms, smoothing the texture and geometry data. Additional datasuch as serial numbers and copyright information can also beincorporated into the data at this point.

Once the data has been prepared, the Data Rendering Process 66 submitsthe data to the appropriate Rendering Device or System 68 by examiningthe order meta-data. This allows different types of merchandise to beproduced using the same fulfillment system as long as the fulfillmentsystem has access to an appropriate type of rendering devices or system.

The Rendering Device or System 68 is specifically anticipated andexpected to take on various forms as merchandise fulfillment needsdictate. Examples of some of the forms expected include the following(although this list should not exclude other rendering devices orsystems being incorporated under the fulfillment process):

a) Software program that converts 3-dimensional geometry and textureinformation into a 2-dimensional representation.

b) Hardware device that converts 3-dimensional geometry and textureinformation into a 2-dimensional representation.

c) Combination of software program(s) and hardware device(s) thatconverts 3-dimensional geometry and texture information into a2-dimensional representation.

d) Physical printers including but not limited to the following (andincluding any drivers or other software needed to provide the necessaryinputs to the printer and to control the printers): ink jet printer,laser printer, dye sublimation printer, ID card printer, printing pressand silk screening apparatus.

e) Fabrication machinery including but not limited to the following (andincluding any drivers or other software needed to provide the necessaryinputs to the machinery and to control the machinery): 3D printer,computer controlled milling machinery, laser cutting machinery, waterjet machinery, carving machinery, swing machinery, stitching machineryand embroidery machinery.

The merchandise produced by the Rendering Device or System 68 variesbased upon the specific rendering device or system used and the orderbeing fulfilled. Examples of types of merchandise that may be producedinclude the following (although this list does not exclude othermerchandise that may be produced under this process):

a) Image or graphical representation of the customized character in anelectronic format (the electronic format may include but not be limitedto static, dynamic, interactive, non-interactive, or any combinationtherein).

b) Image of the customized character printed on a card optionallyincluding personalized information about the customized character and orplayer.

c) A t-shirt, bumper sticker, stickpin, badge, hat, stationery, pen,plaque, poster, trophy, model, sticker, calendar, cup, flag, banner,jacket, or other merchandise possessing the likeness of the customizedcharacter and optionally including personalized information about thecustomized character and/or player.

d) An action figure or doll possessing the likeness of the customizedcharacter.

e) A bust or sculpture possessing the likeness of the customizedcharacter and optionally including personalized information about thecustomized character and/or player.

f) Facial mask possessing the likeness of the customized character.

g) Clothing or accessories resembling those of the customized character.

After the Data Rendering Process 66 and the Rendering Device or System68 has produced the customized merchandise, the merchandise undergoesthe Packaging and Delivery Process 70. As part of this process themerchandise is packaged and delivered to the appropriate party. Methodsfor packaging and delivery will vary depending on the type of customizedmerchandise produced and includes the following (although this listshould not exclude other types of packaging and delivery processes beingutilized under this fulfillment process): electronic delivery(including, but not be limited to, email, FTP, World Wide Web) and othertraditional packaging and delivery mechanisms.

Once the customized merchandise has begun the delivery process (forexample, being provided to a delivery agent) or has been actuallydelivered through electronic means, notifications to appropriate partiesare provided. Notification information includes but is not limited toinvoice information and tracking information of the in-transitmerchandise, methods for accessing or retrieving the merchandise, or asimple notice of completion.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the fulfillment systembecomes a centralized hub that processes players' orders and producescustomized merchandise.

This arrangement offers many “cross-promotional” or “viral” marketingopportunities available to the operator of the fulfillment system toincrease orders. For example, when one player belonging to a formalgroup within the game orders customized merchandise, he can be given theoption of inviting the other players belonging to his group to order thesame type of merchandise. The fulfillment system contacts each of themembers of the group directly or via the game system, informs eachmember that one of their own group members is ordering merchandise, andoffers each of the other members of the group the opportunity topurchase the customized merchandise. Discounts may be offered toincrease the incentive. An alternate incentive that may be offered is,if all members of the group order the merchandise, they may each receivea discount, bonus, or special item as part of their order. If themerchandise in question were a collectible trading card then each memberof the group may order one card of each member of the group. Thus if 10players were in the group, they each would receive 10 collectibletrading cards—one card of each member within the group. A bonus, such asan extra group card, could be offered if all members of the groupcompleted the order. An alternative promotional bonus could be a displaystand or card album.

This strategy, of adding value when processing a group request, is notlimited to trading cards and it is not limited to bonus items anddiscounts. It can easily be applied to other physical merchandise andelectronic merchandise as well. Fa example, when creating images for ahosted Web site, the organizational relationships among the members ofthe group may be rendered along with the images of the characters toproduce an organizational chart. During the Package and Delivery Process70, this organizational chart could be added to each group member'shosted site. Additionally, each position on the organizational chartcould link to the home page of the appropriate individual player as wellas provide statistics and descriptions of the player's character. Thisinterconnectedness of Web sites for individuals within a group providesa valuable marketing and advertising opportunity as well as increasingthe player's involvement with the game and the retention rate ofsubscribers.

The centralized hub example embodiment of the present invention createsadditional utility by becoming a proxy to deliver merchandise as giftsbetween members of a group without the members of the group knowing eachother's personally identifiable information. This is made possible byhaving the fulfillment system 42 correlate each group member's customerinformation, such as their email address or home address, to theirin-game character and allowing group members to purchase customizedmerchandise for each other's in-game characters. The fulfillment system42 may then use the gift receiver's character information to retrievethe gift receiver's personal delivery information and continue to verifyand process the order. During the verification step, criteria such asthe costs associated with the delivery of the customized merchandise,the gift receiver's location, or ability or preference as to whether ornot he or she will accept gifts, can be considered and the gift ordereither modified or rejected automatically or manually via interactionwith the gift giver and the system, the gift receiver and the system, orbetween all parties (both gift giver and receiver and the system).

A further extension of the proxy configuration allows a player to offercustomized merchandise to other people outside of his or her immediategroup, for example through an in-game virtual store. In this scenario,other game players or users of the fulfillment system 42 can browse thecustomized merchandise of the player that created the store and purchasethe customized merchandise of that player. Such customized merchandisecould be highly desirable by other players especially if the customizedmerchandise reflected a high level of achievement within the game orfeatured content to which the store browser did not have access. Forexample, the selling player was the only player to find and defeat anextremely rare high level monster and the victory immortalized into awall poster showing the player fighting and slaying the monster. Mostplayers would only be able to see the rare monster if they purchased thewall poster. Some or all of proceeds from the store could be returned tothe selling player, credited to his account, or converted into in-gameexperience points or in-game currency.

The foregoing merely illustrates the principles of the invention. Itwill thus be appreciated by those skilled in the art that numerous otherarrangements which embody the principles of the invention are thuswithin its spirit and scope.

1. A method for generating customized merchandise based upon an entitywithin a virtual environment, the method comprising: receiving at leastone data element from a data set by at least one processor, wherein thedata set contains a plurality of data elements defining attributes of anentity within a virtual environment; translating the at least one dataelement into at least one merchandise characteristic by the at least oneprocessor; and manufacturing an article of merchandise having a physicalappearance based, at least in part, on the at least one merchandisecharacteristic.
 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising: conductinga game in the virtual environment via the at least one processor,wherein the entity is part of the game.
 3. The method of claim 2,further comprising: changing at least one attribute of the entity duringthe game by the at least one processor; changing at least one dataelement to reflect the change in the at least one attribute by the atleast one processor; and translating the at least one changed dataelement into the at least one merchandise characteristic by the at leastone processor.
 4. The method of claim 2, wherein the entity comprises anaccessory in the game.
 5. The method of claim 2, further comprising:receiving a request for the article from within the game, by the atleast one processor.
 6. The method of claim 2, wherein the entitycomprises a character in the game.
 7. The method of claim 6, wherein theat least one data element defines an attribute chosen from the groupconsisting of: a character race, a character class, a character gender,a character facial appearance, a character body type, a character haircolor, a character hairstyle, a character skin tone, a characterclothing, a character ability score, a character accessory, a charactername, a character action, a character accomplishment and an environmentsetting.
 8. The method of claim 6, wherein the at least one attributedefines a pose of the character.
 9. The method of claim 6, wherein theat least one attribute defines a relationship between the character andthe virtual environment.
 10. The method of claim 6, further comprising:determining whether the character is a member of a group within thevirtual environment; and, if so, making the article available to theuser only if the character is a member of the group.
 11. The method ofclaim 6, further comprising: determining whether the character is amember of a group within the virtual environment by the at least oneprocessor; and, if so, offering to produce the at least one item ofmerchandise for each user controlling a character that is a member ofthe group, by the at least one processor.
 12. The method of claim 1,wherein the article of manufacture is chosen from the group consistingof: a trading card, a poster, a miniature, an action figure, a book, apatch, a t-shirt, a sticker, a stickpin, a badge, a hat, stationery, apen, a plaque, a doll, a bust, a model, a sculpture, a mask, a postcard,a calendar, a cup, a flag, a banner, and a jacket.
 13. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising: determining whether the at least one dataelement comprises an indicator of at least one predefined dataeligibility for receiving the article by the at least one processor; andproviding the article to the user only if the at least one data elementcontains the at least one predefined data element.
 14. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising purchasing the article from a virtual storewithin the virtual environment, via the at least one processor.
 15. Themethod of claim 14, comprising purchasing the item with virtualcurrency, via the at least one processor.
 16. The method of claim 15,wherein the entity is a character in the game and the item is used bythe character within the virtual environment.
 17. The method of claim 2,wherein the data element defines at least one action of the entity madewithin the virtual environment.
 18. The method of claim 2, wherein atleast one of the at least one processors comprises: a game servercontrolling, at least in part, the virtual environment; and at least onesecond processor to translate the at least one data element into atleast one merchandise characteristic; the method comprising: receivingthe at least one data element by the at least one second processor; andtranslating the at least one data element into at least one merchandisecharacteristic by the at least one second processor.
 19. The method ofany claim 1, wherein the at least one data element further defines anattribute of the virtual environment.
 20. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising: generating a high resolution image of the entity on thearticle by the at least one processor.
 21. The method of claim 20,comprising: generating the high resolution image based, at least inpart, on a high resolution model of the entity.
 22. The method of claim1, wherein translating is chosen from the group consisting of refining,enhancing, transforming, and replacing the at least one data element, toform the at least one merchandise characteristic.
 23. The method ofclaim 1, comprising manufacturing a 3-dimensional representation of theentity.
 24. The method of claim 1, further comprising: changing at leastone data element in the data set to change an attribute of the entitywithin the virtual environment by the at least one processor; andtranslating the at least one changed data element into the at least onemerchandise characteristic by the at least one processor.
 25. A methodof generating customized merchandise, the method comprising:establishing a game in a virtual environment comprising, in part, atleast one entity by a game server; receiving instructions by the gameserver from a user via a game client, to control the at least one entityin the game; changing at least one attribute of the at least one entityas a result of the instructions by the game client; receiving a requestfor manufacture of an article of merchandise by a fulfillment webserver, the article being based, at least in part, on current attributesof the entity in the game via a network; and causing manufacture of thearticle with a physical appearance based, at least in part, on thecurrent attributes, including the at least one changed attribute, by thefulfillment web server.
 26. A system for generating customizedmerchandise based upon an entity within a virtual environment, thesystem comprising: an interface configured to receive at least one dataelement from a data set, wherein the data set contains a plurality ofdata elements defining attributes of an entity within a virtualenvironment; and at least one processor configured to: translate the atleast one data element into at least one merchandise characteristic; andcause manufacture of an article of merchandise having a physicalappearance based, at least in part, on the at least one merchandisecharacteristic.
 27. The system of claim 26, wherein the at least oneprocessor is configured to translate the at least one data element intoat least one merchandise characteristic by refining, enhancing,transforming, and/or replacing the at least one data element.
 28. Thesystem of claim 26, wherein the at least one processor is configured tocause manufacture of a 3-dimensional article of merchandise having aphysical appearance of the entity.
 29. The system of claim 26, whereinthe interface is configured to receive a request for the at least onearticle from a server controlling, at least in part, the virtualenvironment.
 30. A system for generating customized merchandise basedupon an entity within a virtual environment, the system comprising: atleast one memory to store data representative of attributes of an entityin a virtual environment; and at least one processor configured to:receive instructions from at least one user to control the entity in thevirtual environment; change at least one attribute of the entity in thevirtual environment based, at least in part, on the instructions;receive a request for an article of merchandise based on the currentattributes of the entity, including the at least one changed attribute;and cause manufacture of the article having a physical appearance based,at least in part, on the current attributes, including the at least onechanged attribute, of the entity.
 31. The system of claim 30, whereinthe at least one processor is further configured to store datarepresentative of the at least one changed attribute, in the memory. 32.The system of claim 30, wherein the at least one processor is configuredto: control operation of a game in the virtual environment.
 33. Thesystem of claim 32, wherein the entity comprises an accessory within thevirtual environment.
 34. The system of claim 30, wherein the article ofmanufacture is chosen from the group consisting of: a trading card, aposter, a miniature, an action figure, a book, a patch, a t-shirt, asticker, a stickpin, a badge, a hat, stationery, a pen, a plaque, adoll, a bust, a sculpture, a model, a mask, a postcard, a trophy, acalendar, a cup, a flag, a banner, and a jacket.
 35. The system of claim30, wherein the entity comprises a character within the virtualenvironment.
 36. The system of claim 35, wherein the current attributesinclude at least one of: character race, character class, charactergender, character facial appearance, character body type, character haircolor, character hairstyle, character skin tone, character clothing,character ability score, character accessory, a character name, acharacter action, a character accomplishment and environment setting.37. The system of claim 35, wherein the at least one processor isfurther configured to: determine whether the character is a member of apredetermined group; and cause the at least one article to bemanufactured only if the character is a member of the predeterminedgroup.
 38. The system of claim 35, wherein the at least one processor isfurther configured to: determine whether the character is eligible toreceive the article of customized merchandise; and, if so, cause thearticle to be provided to the user.
 39. The system of claim 35, whereinthe current attributes include a position of the character.
 40. Thesystem of claim 30, wherein the at least one processor is furtherconfigured to: offer the article for sale from a virtual store withinthe virtual environment.
 41. The system of claim 30, wherein the atleast one processor is further configured to: generate a high resolutionimage of the entity on the article of merchandise.
 42. The system ofclaim 41, wherein the at least one processor is configured to: generatethe high resolution image of the entity based, at least in part, on ahigh resolution model of the entity.
 43. The system of claim 30, whereinthe at least one processor is configured to translate the at least onedata element into at least one merchandise characteristic by refining,enhancing, transforming, and/or replacing the at least one data element.44. The system of claim 30, wherein the at least one processor isconfigured to cause manufacture of a 3-dimensional article ofmanufacture having a physical appearance of the entity.
 45. The systemof claim 30, wherein the interface is configured to receive a requestfor the at least one article from a game server controlling, at least inpart, the virtual environment.
 46. The method of claim 1, wherein: theat least one merchandise characteristic defines one or more physicalattributes of the article of merchandise.
 47. The method of claim 25,comprising: receiving the request from the user.
 48. A method forgenerating customized merchandise based upon an entity within a virtualenvironment, the method comprising: receiving at least one data elementfrom a data set by at least one processor, wherein the data set containsa plurality of data elements defining attributes of an entity within avirtual environment; translating the at least one data element into atleast one merchandise characteristic by the at least one processor;generating an image based, at least in part, on the at least onemerchandise characteristic by the at least one processor; andmanufacturing an article of manufacture bearing the image.
 49. Themethod of claim 48, comprising generating the image on the article ofmanufacture.
 50. The method of claim 48, wherein the item of merchandiseis chosen from the group consisting of: a trading card, a poster, abook, a patch, a t-shirt, a sticker, a stickpin, a badge, a hat,stationery, a pen, a plaque, a mask, a postcard, a trophy, a calendar, acup, a flag, a banner, and a jacket.
 51. The method of claim 48, whereinthe entity is from a game played within a virtual environment, the gamebeing controlled, at least in part, by a game server, under instructionsreceived from a game client under the control of a user, via a network,the method further comprising: playing the game within the virtualenvironment by the user, via the game client; updating an attribute ofthe entity during the game by the game server as a result of playing thegame by the user; and requesting an image of the entity including theupdated attributes of the entity by the user, via the game client. 52.The method of claim 48, wherein the entity is a character from a gameplayed within the virtual environment.
 53. The method of any claim 48,wherein the at least one data element defines an attribute chosen fromthe group consisting of: a character race, a character class, acharacter gender, a character facial appearance, a character body type,a character hair color, a character hairstyle, a character skin tone, acharacter clothing, a character ability score, a character accessory, acharacter name, a character action, a character accomplishment and anenvironment setting.
 54. A method for generating customized merchandisebased upon an entity within a virtual environment, the methodcomprising: receiving at least one data element from a data set by atleast one processor, wherein the data set contains a plurality of dataelements defining attributes of an entity within a virtual environment;translating the at least one data element into at least one merchandisecharacteristic by the at least one processor; and manufacturing a3-dimensional article of manufacture of the entity based, at least inpart, on the at least one merchandise characteristic.
 55. The method ofclaim 54, wherein the 3-dimensional article of manufacture comprises anobject chosen from the group consisting of: a miniature, an actionfigure, a stickpin, a plaque, a doll, a bust, a model, a sculpture, amask, a trophy and a cup.
 56. The method of claim 54, wherein the entityis from a game played within a virtual environment, the game beingcontrolled, at least in part, by a game client under the control of auser, the method further comprising: playing the game within the virtualenvironment by the user, via the game client; updating an attribute ofthe entity during the game, by the game client; requesting an image ofthe entity including the updated attributes of the entity the user viathe game client; and receiving the request by the at least oneprocessor.
 57. The method of claim 56, wherein the entity is a characterfrom a game played within the virtual environment.
 58. The method of anyclaim 54, wherein the at least one data element defines an attributechosen from the group consisting of: a character race, a characterclass, a character gender, a character facial appearance, a characterbody type, a character hair color, a character hairstyle, a characterskin tone, a character clothing, a character ability score, a characteraccessory, a character name, a character action, a characteraccomplishment and an environment setting.
 59. The method of claim 25,comprising receiving the request via the virtual environment.
 60. Themethod of claim 18, wherein the at least one processor further comprisesa game client for a user to play the game, the method furthercomprising: defining the attributes of the entity by the user prior toplaying the game on the game client, via the game client.
 61. The methodof claim 25, comprising receiving the request from the game client, viathe network.
 62. The method of claim 61, comprising receiving therequest from the game client, through the game server, via the network.63. The system of claim 29, wherein: the server is a game servercontrolling, at least in part, operation of a game in the virtualenvironment; and interface is configured to receive a request for the atleast one article from the game server.